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Tuesday, June 25, 2013

In Which Dick Wolf Pounds His Head On His Desk

When Rep. Senfronia Thompson, D-Houston, called for an exemption for women who were victims of rape and incest, Rep. Jody Laubenberg, R-Parker, explained why she felt it was unnecessary.

“In the emergency room they have what’s called rape kits where a woman can get cleaned out,” she said, comparing the procedure to an abortion. “The woman had five months to make that decision, at this point we are looking at a baby that is very far along in its development.”

The remark about rape kits, which is not accurate, sparked widespread ridicule on social media sites. Laubenberg, who has difficulty debating bills, then simply rejected all proposed changes to her bill without speaking until the end of the debate.

Rape kits, as anyone who has watched a TV crime drama any time in the last thirty years knows, are used to gather forensic evidence such as DNA. They have nothing whatsoever to do with abortion or “getting cleaned out.” Indeed, as the intrepid officers of Law & Order: SVU often tell us, a rape kit is about preserving evidence, not destroying it.

I know that the intricacies of police procedure may not be of great interest to Rep. Laubenberg, but she has had to at least watched TV sometime in the last fifteen years.

I’m fascinated with Laubenberg’s over-readiness to equate a law enforcement tool with healthcare – never mind in what fashion. THAT speaks volumes to me: the suggestion that healthcare is somehow connected with criminality.

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